Fountain-pen



(No Model.)

W. I. STAAF.

FOUNTAIN PEN.

No. 551,101. Patented Dec. 10, 1895.

IIIIIIIIII/M /V/ WIT M55555- I INVEN 22.4

ANDREW I.GIAHAM PNUTU-LI'MO.WASHINGTONIML UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE.

WVERNER I. STAAF, OF CAMBRIDGE, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO GEORGE D.XVILDES, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.-

FOUNTAIN-PEN.

SPECIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 551,101, dated December10, 1895. Application filed December 21,1894. Serial No. 532,523. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, WERNER I. STAAF, residing in Cambridge, county ofMiddlesex,

and State of Massachusetts, have invented.

an Improvement in Fountain-Pens, of which the following description, inconnection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, likeletters and numerals on the drawings representing like parts.

This invention relates to that class of pens known as fountain-pens, andhas for its object to provide a fountain-pen which is selffeeding.

In accordance with this invention the hollow penholder or ink-reservoirof the fountain-pen has secured to its end opposite to that to which thepen is secured a hollow compressible air chamber or tube, preferably ofrubber, which is attached to the hollow penholder,so as to communicatetl1erewith,whereby the air within the holder or reservoir may be forcedout by compressing the flexible airchamber, so as to permit the ink toflow into the hollow penholder or reservoir when the pressure upon theflexible air-chamber is relieved, thereby automatically supplying thehollow holder or reservoir with ink.

In order that the air chamber may be guarded against pressure while thepen is in use, a shield for the said air-chamber is provided, which ispreferably made in the form of a cylinder or tube of substantially thesame diameter as the ink-reservoir and adapted to be secured to thepenholder by screw-threads or in other suitable manner, so that itsouter surface is flush with the outer surface of the said reservoir, andpreferably made longer than the air-chamber referred to, so that thefree end of the said shield may be utilized as a holder for a pencil.The penholder is preferably provided at its other end with a hollow tubeor cap, preferably provided with a rubber.

These and other features of this invention will be pointed out in theclaim at the end of this specification.

Figure 1 represents a fountain-pen embodying this invention with apencil shown in operative position; Fig. 2, an elevation and section ofthe fountain-pen shown in Fig. 1, the cover for the pen and the shieldfor the air-chamber being shown in section, the pencil being shown inits inoperative condition;

and Fig. 3, a sectional detail, on an enlarged scale, to more clearlyshow the manner preferred by me of attaching the shield for theair-chamber to the penholder or ink-reservoir.

A represents the penholder or ink-reservoir of a fountain-pen, whichpenholder or inkreservoir may be of any usual or suitable construction,such as now commonly employed, except that in the present instance it ispreferably made substantially shorter than the common form and ispreferably provided with a threaded rear portion a and a stem orprojection a of smaller diameter than the threaded rear portion a.

The front portion of the reservoir or inkholder A may be of any suitableor usual construction for the reception of the pen a In accordance withthis invention the pen holder or ink-reservoir A has secured to its rearend an air-chamber 1), preferably made in the form of a cylinder or tubeof rubber, closed at one end and having its other end adapted toslip'over the projectingstem a on the holder A, the projecting stem abeing preferably provided with an enlargement or annular bead or collar6, (represented by the shading in Figs. 2 and 3,) over which the openend of the air-chamber b is passed and by which an air tight joint iseffected.

The air chamber or tube 19 is protected by the shield 17 preferably ofmetal, but which may be of any other suitable material, and which, forthe best results, is tubular in shape and of substantially the samediameter as the ink reservoir 0r holder A.

The tubular shield 19 is designed to be firmly secured to the holder A,which maybe effected by providing the shield 17 at one end with internalscrew-threads b adapted to engage the threaded portion C6 of the holderA. The shield b in practice prevents the rubber air-chamber b from beingstruck or otherwise subjected to pressure, which would cause a dischargeof the ink from the holder A. The shield 19 may be closed at its outerend; but I prefer to extend the said shield beyond the air-tube b andutilize the said extension (marked 2) as a holder for a pencil c, thelatter, when in its operative position, (shown in Fig. 1,) having itsunpointed end fitted into the extension 2 of the shield b and in orderto prevent the pointed end of the pencil from striking the air-chamber bwhen the pencil c is reversed and its pointed end inserted into theextension 2, as shown in Fig. 2, the said shield may be compressed intothe form of an annular groove 0, which forms a guard to limit theentrance of the pointed end of the pencil into the shield b Instead ofhaving a continuous annular compression of the shield b the same resultmaybe effected by providing a series of inward projections after themanner of a series of internally-pointed nubs formed in the shield D Thepen a carried by the ink reservoir or holder A, may and preferably willbe protected by a cover d, which is removable from the holder A and ispreferably provided with an open end, into which a rubber (1 may beinserted.

lVhen it is desired to supply the ink reservoir or holder A with ink,the cover a and the shield 19 are removed from the said holder and theair chamber or tube 7) is compressed between the fingers, after whichthe end of the holder A, carrying the pen a maybe submerged in ink, andwhen thus submerged the pressure upon the air-tube b may be relieved,which will cause the ink to flow up into the holder A, but not into theair-chamber b.

If it is desired to use the pen after being filled, the shield 12 issecured to the holder A, so as to protect the air-chamber b, and the penmay then be used after the manner of an ordinary writing-pen. By meansof the shield b the flexible air-chamber b is protected from pressure,and as a result a free and even flow of the ink is obtained; whereas ifthe shield 19 were omitted the air-chamber I) would be liable to strikethe hand of the operator and cause an abnormal flow of the ink, whichwould produce a blot upon the paper.

By means of the extension 2 of the shield 71 the fountain-pen may berendered capable of use as a lead-pencil, and when it is desired to useit the blunt end of the pencil 0 may be withdrawn from the extension 2,and

the rear end of the said pencil inserted into the said extension andinto the position shown in Fig. 1.

By providing the hollow cover cl with a rubber cl the latter may beutilized after the manner of an ordinary eraser. The cover (Z may beprovided with an air-vent (1 In the improved fountain-pen abovedescribed the ink is received within and held by the reservoir or holderA, and the air tube or chamber 1) does not serve as an ink reservoir andis made of such length with relation to the length of the reservoir Athat when the said tube is compressed and then relieved the quantityofink taken up is not sufficient to pass through the reservoir into theair tube or chamber, and as a result the air-tube always remainsflexible and in operative condition and is not attacked and renderedhard, as would be the case if the airchamber constituted theink-reservoir of the pen.

I claim-- As an improved article of manufacture, a fountain penconsisting of an ink reservoir A, carrying at one end a pen, which issupplied with ink from said reservoir' and having its opposite endreduced in diameter, a flexible air-chamber I) attached to the reducedend of the said reservoir and communicating therewith, and a tubularshield of substantially the same diameter as the pen-holding inkreservoir, having closed sides to protect the air chamber Z) againstoutside pressure and attached to the reduced end of the said reservoirwith its outer surface substantially flush with the outer surface of thepen-holding ink reservoir and forming acontinuation of the same in thecompleted fountain pen, the said air chamber being of such size withrelation to the pen-holding ink reservoir as not to receive the inkadmitted into the said reservoir, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

W'ERNER I. STA'AF.

W'itnesses:

JAS. H. CHURCHILL, J. MURPHY.

